Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology (May 2021)
Racial Disparities in Patients with Melanoma: A Multivariate Survival Analysis
Abstract
Joshua Brady,1 Reem Kashlan,1 Julie Ruterbusch,2 Mehdi Farshchian,3 Meena Moossavi3 1Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI, USA; 2Department of Oncology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA; 3Department of Dermatology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USACorrespondence: Mehdi FarshchianDepartment of Dermatology, Wayne State University, 18100 Oakwood Blvd., Suite 300, Dearborn, MI, 48124 Email [email protected]: As the most common cause of skin cancer death, incidence and mortality of melanoma vary widely between ethnic and racial groups.Methods: Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) data were used to examine the incidence and survival in patients with melanoma concerning race and ethnicity in Wayne County, Michigan between 2000 and 2016.Results: Analysis of data revealed significantly higher melanoma-specific death in non-Hispanic black patients compared to their non-Hispanic white counterparts (p < 0.001). However, no increased risk of death due to melanoma was observed following adjustment of data for the stage, age, and sex (H.R. = 1.00, 95% CI 0.64– 1.56).Conclusion: Non-Hispanic black patients have the highest percentage of late-stage melanoma. Increased incidence of melanoma mortality in non-Hispanic black patients is likely a consequence of late-stage diagnosis.Keywords: melanoma, racial disparities, epidemiology, clinical research, skin of color
